


Trapped In Vah Medoh

by KarkatVantabulous



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Arguing, Battle, Blood, Cold Weather, Injury, Jealousy, M/M, Oneshot, Slow Build, trapped together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-03
Packaged: 2018-11-22 15:32:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11383074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KarkatVantabulous/pseuds/KarkatVantabulous
Summary: Link and Revali were never the best of friends, most people who knew then wouldn't even consider the two friends at all. But once Revali accidentally manages to trap the two in Divine Beast Vah Medoh, they grow to be just a bit more than friends. After all, when trapped inside a Divine Beast all you can really do is get to know each other.





	Trapped In Vah Medoh

"This beast is just so... _fascinating!_ " Zelda exclaimed as she jogged throughout Vah Medoh. Link was trying his best to keep up but Hylia, was Zelda fast when she was excited. "I still can't believe this beast was built by people!" Revali, who had previously run off to actually activate Vah Medoh, gracefully landed just a few feet away from the pair of Hylians who were admiring the interesting (and definitely not the same thing Link has seen on every other piece of ancient Sheikah technology and was starting to get a bit annoyed at seeing everywhere he turned) pattern and carvings on the Divine Beast's wall.

"Yes, it is quite impressive." The Rito Champion hummed, walking over. "I will never understand how that old tribe managed to get this gigantic piece of junk to fly and stay in the air." Zelda frowned and turned to the Rito, an annoyed look on her face. They've had this conversation countless times.

"The Divine Beasts are  _not_ pieces of junk, Revali. I'll say it again, they are incredible machines and weapons against the future threat of Calamity Ganon.  _Not_ junk." The Princess huffed and turned sharply walking into another room. Link of course followed her and Revali followed him.

"I'm merely saying that if these things were so incredible," Revali began as he caught up, "then this Divine Beast would be up in the air when I wanted it to be in the air. And I don't even want to mention the hassle of getting it back down! The barrier it uses to defend itself is nearly impenetrable but of course with my perfect archery skills I can take it down."

"Then you shouldn't be complaining about it." The Princess retaliated with just a bit of an attitude. The comment made Link smirk just a bit, Revali instantly noticed and shot a glare at Link. "Besides, it is your duty to control this Divine Beast, find some kind of connection with it and make it obey your commands. Urbosa has done it successfully already, Mipha is on her way there as is Daruk. I know they have faced hardships with their own Divine Beasts the way you are but they have managed to overcome them."

"Oh please Princess, I hate to be rude but you can't compare me to them."

"And why not? They are Champions like yourself. They were chosen the way you were chosen. The only difference between you and them is that they are all considered royals to their people. But even then that should make no difference in your progress controlling Vah Medoh." Revali stood there silently with his beak agape. Zelda had her arms crossed and once she realized that Revali wouldn't attempt to retaliate and she walked off once more, Link following closely behind.

The rest of Zelda's trip included a basic maintenance check (to see if nothing was suddenly broken or misplaced) and check on Revali's progress getting Vah Medoh to obey his commands. As suspected Revali failed that part.

"Our next stop is Daruk. Hopefully he has more luck with Vah Rudania." Revali grumbled under his breath and turned around, flying away to some other part of Vah Medoh. "Alright Link, let us be off." The Hylian Knight nodded as he walked alongside the princess. "Hylia I hate that guy." Zelda muttered under her breath. Usually when she was around Link she was cold and quiet, however when the two of them were around Revali she seemed just a bit more talkative. "I mean, I understand that I can't exactly hate anyone but I hate him. He's so pretentious and arrogant and...UGH!" Link nodded in agreement. Yeah, Revali was kind of a jerk. "Oh dear, I'm afraid I left the bag of food and elixirs back inside Vah Medoh's main control room. Could you please go back inside and fetch it for me?" Link looked back at the parked machine. Vah Medoh was laying on its underside and- at the moment- it was quite easy to get in and out. Link could run in and grab it in about ten seconds. However he didn't want to to leave Zelda alone...

"I'll be fine. Besides," Zelda pointed to the group of Rito warriors standing guard a few feet away, "If I for some reason need to be protected they will be there. But I highly doubt anything will happen in the the one minute you're gone." Link chewed his lip but nodded reluctantly. He walked backwards to the Divine Beast's entrance, watching Zelda as she walked away from him and to the armed Rito. Okay, in and out. Link could do this.

He swiveled around and began jogging to the small room not too far away, jumping from one floor to the one under and climbing the wall to reach it. Just as he hauled himself onto the second floor once again, Vah Medoh began rumbling. Link's ears twitched upward as he looked around for the danger. Medoh only rumbled more and it wasn't until it was too late that Link realized the Divine Beast was taking off.

He sprinted over the giant moving platforms (which moved more with Medoh taking off) and to the Divine Beast's entrance. He was too late. Medoh was already off the ground. He could see Zelda down below staring up and pointing up to the sky. He had to find a way down before-

"Hahaha! I've done it!" Revali's excited yells were barely heard over the propellers. "Finally! I've gotten Medoh to listen!" Where was he? Where was Revali? With him Link could get down. 

Speak of the Calamity...

Zooming in the sky and right in front of Link's eyes was the blue feathered Rito Warrior. Link waved rapidly in hopes of getting his attention and he did. Confused, Revali landed just in front of Link. "What are you doing here? Did you and the princess return to mock my inability to control Medoh? If so you will be pleasantly surprised to hear that I got this hunk of junk to obey me. Impressive I know." The Hylian rolled his eyes and shook his head, pointing down to the ground where Zelda's golden hair could barely be seen. "Oh. I see." Revali sighed and knelt down, spreading his wings. "I'm only allowing you to ride me so I can brag to the Princess how I heroically saved your life AND managed to control Vah Medoh." Link rolled his eyes and shrugged.

Revali mentally prepared himself for a moment before taking off to the skies. Vah Medoh had a different idea in mind, however. Without any commands the beast activated its barrier causing Revali to stop suddenly and almost throw Link off his back.

"Well now this isn't good...but...don't worry, I can get us out of here. Medoh's barrier isn't impossible to take down." He swooped down onto Medoh's back, grabbed his bow, and went straight back to the skies. "No need to worry, my superior skills will have us safely on the ground in no time. In fact, you can take this time to perhaps take notes on how a true fighter looks out in battle." Link rolled his eyes again. He wasn't going to waste precious energy to sign out a retaliation to the stuck up Rito. He just wanted-  _needed_ \- to get down.

Revali was a skilled archer, there was no doubt about it. However this was a piece of ancient Sheikah technology, that tribe was well prepared for anything. By anything that meant an overgrown bird with a bow. As Revali flew as high as he could and pulled out his bow to line up a shot before he plummeted to his death, a red light pointed directly at him.

"This is new..." Revali whispered, sounding a bit terrified. Having no idea what it was he continued to aim. It wasn't until the whirring noise of something powering up that Revali realized he was going probably going to become a roasted bird. He didn't have time to dodge but luckily Link was faster. With an ancient shield (given to him out of the kindness of Robbie's heart) he managed to deflect the laser and save the two of them. Oh Hylia, this was going to be harder than all the other times Revali's had to do this. Usually he just shot at the points where the barrier connected, now there were lasers shooting out of those points!

The Rito Champion grumbled and swooped over to the center of the beast. There was another point on Medoh's beak where Revali could shoot and hopefully get some kind of opening. As he flew closer, bow at the ready, Link made a silent prayer to the Goddesses. He really didn't want to die, not like this. Not with him. He didn't want to be remembered as the guy who died with Revali.

Revali pulled his bow out and aimed quickly, letting an array of arrows hit his target. It seemed to do very little damage because the next second they were being targeted again. Now it was Link's turn. Once again he pulled out his Sheikah shield and held it protectively in front of the two. The laser bounced off but also knocked the shield out of Link's hands and sent it flying down.

"Oh  _good_ job Link!" Revali groaned. "Now we'll die for sure thanks to your inability to hold a shield!"

_"Are you sure it isn't because you can't do your job right?"_  Link signed sloppily with one hand, the other was still holding onto Revali. Hey, he didn't want to fall.

"Oh don't even go there, you want to hear about not doing jobs right then I'll  _tell_ you about not doing-" Another red light aimed right at Revali's chest. Their eyes widened and the poor, doomed Rito tried to dive downward and out run the laser. The laser was faster. Revali was fast, he managed to not get killed, but he was hit. The blow sent the two of them falling down. By the grace of the Goddess Hylia herself Link managed to grab a hold of a single dangling rope Revali had tied just underneath a platform on Medoh and on Revali's wing.. The rope was there to hold little lanterns to more people wouldn't freak out when they see a giant bird in the sky and so Revali knew where to land at night.

Link was trained for situations in which he had to hold someone and climb at the same time. For some reason or another the King saw it fight that he learned that "just in case." He always thought it was pretty dumb to think Link needed this, but now he was extremely grateful. It was a hassle but Link managed to pull up the unconscious Rito up and drape him over his shoulder in order to climb up the rope. By the time he reached the platform Link was out of breath and ready to collapse and die. Then the familiar noise of the laser being charged up rang in his ears and Link had to spring to his feet to drag Revali inside.

The Knight physically cringed upon seeing Revali's injury. It was pretty bad. Not so much that Revali would die but it was...hard to look at the laser had hit him on the shoulder and partially his neck. The feathers in that area were burned off and left a bloody mess. Link breathed in deeply and picked Revali up once more. He just needed to cross over to the control room and grab a fairy tonic out of Zelda's bag and Revali would be good as new. He hoisted the Rito over his shoulder once more and jumped from one unsteady platform to the next. He gently dropped Revali down and quickly snatched Zelda's bag up, grabbing the much needed tonic. In situations like this Link needed to slather on the tonic. Sure it'd work slower but he wasn't going to risk losing a finger trying to force-feed the tonic to Revali. So he dumped some of the tonic on his hand and gently rubbed it onto Revali's wound. The next step was to cover up that nasty injury. Link had nothing to really use but he sighed and used his traveling cloak to bandage Revali up. He made a mental note to tell Revali to buy him a new one.

Now Link could relax. Mostly. He sat down against a wall and sighed loudly, closing his eyes. The propellers outside kept whirring and seemed to be showing no sign of stopping any time soon, neither did the barrier or the cannons. Link was going to be stuck up there a while. With Revali. Maybe jumping out Medoh and risking the chance of being blasted to smithereens was worth it...

Late in the night Revali finally came to. He groaned and tried to push himself up to a sitting position but his left wing collapsed and he dropped down to the ground. A dull pain shot up his arm to his shoulder. Hissing in pain, he tried again. This time he was successful but it only caused him to hurt more. He glanced down to his shoulder but instantly looked straight ahead. Nope. He was not going to look at that, not now. The mental image was burned into his brain, however, and every time he tried not to think about how his half dried and healed skin mixed with the half bloody part. How his feathers were crusty with his blood. Ugh.

A dim light glowed from besides him suddenly. It was the faint, pink glow of a fair flying around in an empty jar of milk. The glow only lit up Link's tired looking face as he stared down at Revali. With his free hand he pointed at his blood soaked travelers cloak then at Revali's injured shoulder. The Rito grunted and slowly grabbed the garb and covered up the bloody mess.

"I supposed you feel pretty high and mighty about yourself right now, eh?" Revali finally said once he finished up. "The chosen hero has saved the famous Rito warrior from bleeding to death." Link said nothing. "Well whatever. I'll make you a deal, you say nothing of this I say nothing of me saving you."

_"Your version of saving me was flying me off of Vah Medoh, you didn't. Therefore you never saved me."_  Revali growled and turned his body slightly away from Link.

"It isn't my fault that that this over sized tin can disobeys me at every turn! I never told it to put its barrier up or start attacking!" Link shrugged, sitting a good five feet away from the upset Revali. "If you had to figure out how to control an entire beast like this then you would have trouble too. Don't go thinking you're better than me."

_"I never said or implied that I'm better than you."_

"Oh but you do. In  _every little thing_  you do you're practically  _screaming_ out how much more important you are." Revali stood up rather fast, with his blood loss he got just a bit dizzy  but that didn't stop him from storming off to some other area of his Divine Beast. Link stared blankly after him, not even bothering to go after him. 

-

Link's loud grunts echoed throughout Medoh, surprisingly they weren't drowned out with the loud propellers. That very annoying sound was the cause of Revali waking up just a bit too early and forcing him into a bad mood. What made his already bitter mood worse was looking out to see Medoh was still in the air and still had the barrier up. Well whatever, it wasn't like he could fly down if the barrier wasn't down.

Another loud grunt and the Rito followed the noise. And there was Link in all his irritating glory. The morning sun mixed with the odd blue colored barrier and gave him an eerie glow and made his trusty darkness sealing sword glow as well. He was swinging his sword around madly (okay so maybe he was practicing like a normal knight would) and making all kinds of noise.

"So first you go off and insult me and now you wake me up at the crack of dawn with your loud and unnecessary grunting." Link glanced over to the champion and lowered his sword. "Oh no, don't mind me. Go on, continue practicing. You're obviously going to need it." The Hylian rolled his eyes but did so and continued his practice.

Revali placed himself five feet away and fiddled with his bow and remaining arrows. Every so often he would look up at Link and scoff. Hylia, what a show off.

Link turned around and tilted his head, with one hand he signed to Revali that he knows he's been staring. Revali glared.

"Don't preen yourself. I was just thinking how absolutely clueless you looked with that little sword of yours." Link scoffed and walked on over to Revali. "Wait, what're you doing?" Link held the sword out to him, inviting him to grab it. "I don't want that." With one hand Link tried his best to sign.

_"If you think I look clueless then why don't you show me what clueless doesn't look like. Unless you don't think you can prove me wrong."_ Revali snatched the Master Sword right out of Link's hand (with his good wing of course) and stood up. It was a lot heavier than anticipated and the handle felt slippery, though it wasn't because of Link's hand sweat because it was dry.

Link stepped back. An amused look already on his face. Revali held the sword out and swung it around weakly. It was  _a lot_  heavier than it looked and that only made swinging it harder. From watching Link wave that thing around so easily earlier he figured it weighed next to nothing! Link chuckled as he watched Revali's failed attempt at a spin attack. He promptly took his weapon back and showed the Rito Champion how the attack was properly done.

"Whatever. Swords are overrated. My real superiority lies in bows anyway." Link hummed and nodded, returning the Master Sword to its sheath and plopped himself down to besides Revali.

_"How's your shoulder doing?"_  Link asked, trying to peak over to take a look for himself.

"It hurts and I'm sure I'll die if this doesn't heal." Link offered him the half empty bottle of Fairy Tonic but Revali pushed it away. "Please, fairy tonic won't help."

_"Fairy tonic is what saved your life."_  Revali groaned loudly and rolled his eyes.

"Fine, fine! Give me the damn tonic!" Link handed him the bottle but he knew Revali wouldn't be able to do it on his own. And as expected he couldn't. The second he went to slather the tonic on, he winced and looked over at Link with a mixture of annoyance and pleading. The Hylian poured just a bit of the tonic on his hands before slathering it on Revali's wound. They were just a bit too close to Revali's liking and he was noticeably uncomfortable, his feathers were beginning to puff up. When he was finished, Link returned to his spot and pulled an apple out of Zelda's bag, he took a handful of wild berries and offered them to Revali who begrudgingly took them.

"How long do you think we'll be in here for?" The champion asked as he ate his berries. Link shrugged. "I can't be cooped in here too long. I'll go insane." Another shrug. "You know, I absolutely hate when you do that. Use your words. Speak. Or...do your hand thing. Whatever. You can at least try to hold a decent conversation."

_"I'm sorry but you don't usually talk to me this long, I'm not used to you going on and on."_

"Well get used to it. If we're going to be stuck in here you're going to be forced to listen to me prattle on and on."

_"Fine. I don't know how long we'll be in here. And I'll go insane too. Zelda is down there without me. She's vulnerable. If anything happens to her it'll be my fault."_  Silence filled the air between them. Revali kind of regretted sparking up a conversation now.

"Well it is your fault. You came in here. If you hadn't of come in here when you had then it would've just been me in here."

_"If it were just you in here you would've died."_ More silence. Revali shifted around uncomfortably and decided to change the subject. There was nothing else to talk about.

"I have a brand new bow you know." The Rito held up his newest bow proudly. Link grunted. "Oh that's it." He stood up, annoyed at Link's lack of interest in any kind of conversation. "I'm going off to try to get this asinine thing onto the ground. You stay here and mope all you want." Revali grumbled and walked off, back to the main control room, leaving Link alone but not for long. As the upset Rito walked slowly over the unsteady platforms he heard footsteps approaching then he saw Link hopping from one platform to another. "I thought I gave you permission to sit there and stew in your own feelings." Link made it safely across and waited for the champion. " _Go away._  I don't need you breathing on me as I try to control Medoh."

_"I can help you."_  Link signed once Revali made it over.  _"I've seen Mipha connect with Vah Ruta. I can help."_

"You can help peel My flattened body off the ground once I jump a hundred feet down because that will be the last thing I do before I even consider taking your help." Revali grumbled, placing his hands on the flat surface where the infamous Sheikah eye was carved and glowing. "If you don't mind I'd like it very much if you backed away." Link did so. "Thank you." Revali closed his eyes and tried to tap into the spiritual connection with Medoh. Once he was fully connected he was able to see everything his Divine Beast was seeing. He looked down and saw a nearby empty piece of land. Excellent.

"Hold on to your feathers, Link. I'm landing this thing." He thought hard and willed for Medoh to lower itself safely onto the field. Medoh did the opposite. It screeched, turned upward and flew higher into the sky. The sudden change in position threw both Revali and Link against the opposite wall. Link was the gentleman in this case and pulled Revali in front of himself so he could smack against Link and not the wall. He only did this because of Revali's injury though. Once Medoh was satisfied with the new height it turned itself to its previous position and continued it's flight. Now they were higher in the air where it was a lot colder.

The Rito quickly walked away from the Hylian and to the edge where the many unstable platforms showed a path back to the main control room. Link slowly peeled himself off the wall and trudged over to Revali.

_"You have to sympathize with Medoh."_  Link signed out, his head pounding.  _"Let it understand all of you and you understand all of it. That's how you get it to obey you."_  Revali rolled his eyes and walked quickly across and back to the main control unit.  _"It's like trying to get a horse to trust you. Just let it know you're completely understanding of it and it will be comfortable enough with you to do whatever you want it to."_

"Oh now that's just absurd. You can't compare a piece of ancient and highly complex technology to a  _horse_. A wild animal that  _only_  obeys you because you give it  _food_." The champion scoffed as he watched the Hylian hop onto the many platforms with ease. "Medoh is a bird by the way. Not a horse. Maybe if Urbosa was having trouble with Naboris that method would work well but here it doesn't. Now if you'll excuse me," Revali placed his hands atop the Sheikah once more, "I'm going to land Medoh  _for sure_  this time."

A repeat of earlier events took place. Medoh flew up higher and sent both the champions to the wall opposite of them. Link was squashed by Revali once again and Revali scolded Link for distracting him and causing this to happen. The two bickered for a good while before Link became frustrated and left to cool down with a nice snack from Zelda's bag. Revali climbed to Medoh's back, his injury hurting less than before but still causing noticeable pain.

They'd been trapped inside the Divine Beast for such a short time and Revali already felt like plucking his feathers out in frustration. He just couldn't stand  _Link_. He couldn't stand  _Medoh_. He couldn't stand  _himself_. The stress of not knowing when the biggest threat in history would appear mixed with the stress of trying to figure out a giant bird robot mixed with the jealousy of not being the one hero everyone would look up to in future generations because the Goddesses didn't see him as one all made him even more high strung than usual. It was too much to handle.

Link must've been laughing at him right now. He must be sitting there with his little Master Sword chuckling to himself about how he was the Hero of Hyrule and not Revali. He must feel pretty damn self righteous at the moment. Well Revali wasn't going to have any of that! He stood up almost as quickly as he sat down and went right back into Vah Medoh.

Link was just a floor underneath where they were earlier. Sitting comfortably with his Fairy in jar and what looked like food beside him. Revali marched confidently to him, preparing his words as he walked. All confidence drained when he realized how hungry he was and Link had a wild-berry crepe next to him. Damn. How was he supposed to start up an argument when Link had the food around here. The Hylian noticed Revali, who was now slowly approaching him, and waved him on over. The crepe was half finished and he had a dazed smile on his face.

"Oh, I see." Revali began in a rather bratty tone. "So you're jut going to eat all the food we have and let me starve huh? You're allowing the Rito Champion  _and_  pilot of this Divine Beast, who is a  _crucial_  part of our plan to seal away Calamity Ganon need I remind you, to starve. Typical self absorbed "hero"." Link rolled his eyes and dug around in a bag that wasn't Zelda's but looked similar and pulled out a nice fish dish. Revali's eyes widened at the sight of it. It had been in Link's bag and yet it looked like it had just been cooked! The Rito champion wasted no time in going over and quickly snatching the meal out of Link's hand to gobble it up. Good Goddess it was delicious.

_"Am I still a self absorbed hero?"_  Link questioned, a smug look on his face as Revali wiped some food off of his beak.

"By asking that my automatic answer will be yes. So yes. You are." Revali set the now empty plate aside and reminisced about his delicious meal. "How did you manage to keep that meal warm and perfect after being in your bag for so long?"

_"You see, part of being the hero of Hyrule means I get magic bags that keep my food in perfect condition and temperature. It's the least the Goddesses could do for me since I protect the kingdom."_  The Hylian snickered as Revali exaggeratedly rolled his eyes.

"This is exactly why I loathe you."

_"Don't take it so seriously. It was a simple joke. Truth is, I got this bag as a gift from father when I was revealed to be "_ the _hero". He said the heroes before me used the bag as well for their weapons and other items."_

"Hm, well aren't you lucky. You get a magical bag that manages to withstand thousands of years of Ganon. Maybe we should use that against him instead of this idiotic Divine Beast that won't even listen to me!" This earned a quiet laugh from Link. Something that was extremely rare. Truth be told none of the Champions- besides Mipha- had heard Link talk or make any kind of sound besides the obvious grunt. He was almost always silent and stoic. Mipha always mentioned to the others how she missed hearing his voice, it was supposedly as sweet as the ancient notes played on the age-old Goddess Harp. Now Revali was there witnessing Link actually  _laugh_ and  _smile_  for the  _first_  ever around him. His heart seemed to stop for half a second then it began but it beat twice as fast as before.

_"For some reason I feel like the bag would probably just keep Ganon stewing in his own raging juices rather than actually seal him away."_

"That's why we tie the bag up and dump it in Lake Hylia." Another laugh managed to escape Link's lips and Revali couldn't help but smile just a bit.

_"Who would've thought such a stuck up Rito such as yourself would be so funny if given the opportunity."_

"Well I am the great Revali after all. There isn't I can't do exceeding well."

_"Except pilot Medoh."_  Revali rolled his eyes at that.

"That joke is rather tired. Maybe we should move on to the one where the so called Hero fall apart laughing at a pathetic joke about putting Ganon in a bag for 10,000 years." Link snickered and leaned against the cold wall of Medoh. Since they were higher up than before the temperature had dropped, but Link would be fine as long as Medoh didn't fly into the Hebra region.

_"Anything as small and pathetic as that can be funny if you've spent years of your life conditioned to act and think a certain way."_ Link stood up, sword in hand and looked outside. It was dark out and it seemed like a full moon was in the sky that night. With one hand he sloppily signed;  _"I'm going to practice now. I suggest you rest up."_ The Rito champion stood and made his way to the floor above them. Link's grunts filled Medoh's rooms but that was drowned out as Revali thought of Link's laugh and how Mipha was right to compare it to the Goddess Harp.

-

The following morning was cold, perhaps even freezing cold if you weren't in garb suited for snowy regions. Link was safe, however, since Zelda was smart enough to pack several elixirs that specialized in keeping the cold out. Link was hardly feeling the chilly air, even less as he worked up a sweat in his morning practice. Revali of course, wasn't affected at all. The cold was actually a bit soothing against his injury. It was still a bit disgusting to look it but it was healing up quite nicely.

As Revali walked where Link was swinging his sword around, he noted a change. Usually when Revali entered the same room as him he felt a ball of dread and hatred drop into his stomach. He felt anger boil in his blood. He felt the sudden need to remind Link that it should've been  _him_  to be the hero. Today was different and he couldn't tell why.

"What kind of training does a knight as high up as you need to go through? Is it as difficult as the training of a Royal Guard?" Link turned around, putting the Master Sword back into his sheath.  "Hope you don't mind my asking, I just wanted to see if it was as vigorous as the daily training  _I_  put  _myself_  into to become as skilled an archer as I am now." Link chuckled and walked over to where the Rito was now sitting. He offered him a few fruits and a surprisingly fresh jar of milk before he began his explanation.

_"I had to read a lot for a while. Then I had to master every weapon I could. Then I had to read more, but this time about like my history. Then I had to take a test."_  Revali sat there for a moment, expecting a bit more detailing on what exactly Link just said. When he didn't get any he realized he had to ask.

"What kind of things did you have to read." Link stopped for a second to gather his thoughts before he began.

_"Hyrule's History. From the very beginning to before it was Hyrule to how it was 10,000 years ago. I had to read nonstop for nearly a week and remember it all so I would better understand how much the kingdom has grown. Then I had to read about the history of my ancestors- or more myself. The Goddess Hylia supposedly made the spirit of the first Hero called Link to be reborn until the end of time to protect Hyrule. From what I read he loved his land so much he died protecting it using the Master Sword. So in a way he technically never died and I technically will never die."_

"Hm. It seems the Goddesses like you more than I originally thought. To think they believe your skills are so incredible they make you practically immortal. And yet here I am praying to the statues everyday asking to help improve my skills in any way possible." Revali set aside the stems of several varying fruits and a banana peel. "I have to admit though, this seems kind of unrealistic. Even for the Goddesses. Making one person come back from the dead to kill Ganon forever seems like a bit of a bad move. Eventually Ganon will do something to end you permanently and there goes their not-so-secret weapon."

_"The books were written by the ancient Oracles. They said that the Hero of Time created a rift  in time that split the fate of Hyrule into three outcomes, two where he lives and one where he dies. So obviously Ganon has done something at some point to ruin Hylia's ancient battle secret, but it clearly worked out."_

"Well I guess." The slightest feeling of jealousy returned to the put of Revali's stomach upon hearing all this. He believed Link was the all admirable Hero before, but  _now_? He was basically the Goddesses favorite all because  _one_  guy died in the name of the Hylia. Great.

_"As for physical training I had learn how to use two handed weapons as easily as I use single handed ones. Then I had to learn how to those weapons strategically based on my situation. I also had to learn how to use a bow but_ clearly _I'll never be as skilled as you."_  Revali scoffed and crossed his arms, just a bit of pain shooting up his shoulder.

"I don't need you to patronize me."

_"It was a compliment."_

"Perhaps in your sarcastic world it was. But here, out in the real world, we believe in actual compliments and not ones that clearly said to be condescending." Link rolled his eyes.

_"As I was saying, for my final test I had to obviously prove I was truly one with the sword then they asked me a series of questions based on the things I've read, then they sent me away to the Lost Forest to see if I could navigate through it without torches to see if I was, again, one with the sword. That test was so I could follow the voice in the sword."_  The Hylian smiled as he thought of the trials he had to face in order to be recognized as the true master of his legendary weapon.  _"It was all worth it, in the end. I can honestly say I feel at home with this sword in my hand."_

"Sounds like you have quite an attachment to that thing. I wouldn't advise that, it will only hurt worse when Calamity Ganon breaks it into two as if it were a twig." Link shook his head and pulled out the sword, showing it off to Revali. It was indeed, quite a weapon. It glowed a beautiful blue light which made Link look even more powerful when wielding it. The blade was sharp enough to where you could probably get cut just by being in the same room as it. Revali had to admit, he was envious of Link and his magnificent looking sword.

_"The sword has faced thousands of years of evil. I'm sure it can take another battle with Ganon."_ The Rito hummed in response. Link sat down and began cleaning his beloved weapon.

Revali tapped his fingers against his crossed legs and kept his gaze straight. Something inside of himself wanted to apologize to Link for, well, everything. Mainly the overwhelming jealousy. He didn't understand why, perhaps it had to do with pity? Did he pity Link for constantly having to live life as a weapon and never getting the chance to live an easy life? Maybe it had something to do with why Revali suddenly felt so differently towards Link? Whatever the reason was, Revali wanted to confess and apologize. He wasn't going to though. Well...maybe he would. He didn't know what to do. On one hand he felt like he needed to apologize and explain himself, but on the other hand he felt like he Link didn't care and it would make no difference whether or not he knew of Revali's reasoning behind his jealousy (which he most likely already figure out).

Link set his weapon down, the blade was clean to the point where Revali could glance down and see his own reflection stare right back up at him.  _"We're in the Hebra region."_  Link finally signed out after a moment of silence.  _"I've had to drink an elixir already but I don't know how long it'll hold out before I start freezing to death."_

"Hm. Medoh must've changed course in the night and gone farther south. No need to worry, I'm sure this Divine Beast will tire itself out eventually. It can't keep its barrier up forever."

_"You know what I find strange, none of the other Champions or anyone for that matter has come by to try to get us out."_

"Oh, they have. They mostly attack by night however. And since you're such a heavy sleeper you never hear." Revali sighed, slathering the fairy tonic Link just handed him onto his injury. "Yes, it's usually a series of shouting your name before the get blasted out the sky."

_"What's this, the Great Revali is sitting here feeling sorry because no one is doing a battle cry for him?"_  Link smirked but that soon turned into a small, soft smile and a pleasant pat on the back.  _"If it makes you feel any better I risked my life to keep you from being disintegrated by Medoh's barrier."_

"That makes me feel  _so_ much better." The Rito rolled his eyes. "In all seriousness though, I don't believe you quite understand my situation. Here I am, a highly valuable part of the Rito Community and a very much needed warrior for my people, trapped inside the Divine Beast that I need to gain control over with the Hylian Champion hand plucked from the very hands of the Goddesses. I'm quite sure you know I'm very much envious of you and your reputation as the hero chosen by the sword."

_"Yeah, I never really understood that."_

"Well my jealousy mostly stems from the fact that you're treated higher than the princess herself! Simply because you're the very weapon we need to destroy Ganon. This will sound extremely childish and I already regret saying it but it just isn't fair. Urbosa, Daruk, Mipha, and I are all part of this as well. We'll be there fighting alongside you and take part in sealing away the darkness and yet whenever we're all out and about people seem to crowd you and your sword." There, he had said it. As expected he already regretted this entire conversation. It felt too out of character for him to actually admit his feelings but it was going to have to be done eventually so why not now while they were stuck inside a giant bird.

_"If I could give you my destiny I would. But my destiny isn't something I would wish upon anyone. Me being alive basically means that evil will live once again. The only reason it seems like such a wonderful thing to be me is because people have romanticized the idea of me. They paint me to be an incredibly powerful hero but they all fail to remember that I never asked to be alive so my life could be taken away from me by countless hours of training and the inevitable stress of oncoming darkness."_

"I have to admit I never thought of it like that. Or actually, I never really thought of you in any light other than negative." Link shrugged, looking at his reflection in the sword that seals the darkness. "I'm a bit surprised right now. You never talk or do as much as a simple hello and yet here you are spilling something as personal as that. You're Zelda's appointed knight and she claims you hardly say- er,  _sign_ a word to her. I've done nothing but belittle and insult you since the day I realized you were to be Hyrule's savior. Why are you suddenly telling me all of these personal things?" Link smiled down at his reflection then up to Revali. The smile caught the Rito off guard, he attempted to smile back but it just looked awkward and sort of painful to look at.

_"Like I said, you all paint me to be someone I'm not. I'm the Princess's appointed knight yes, but I'm also a person apart from that. Plus I have to admit, I do admire your combat skills."_  Uh oh, Revali's heart began beating at double speed again. He didn't understand why this was all happening to him and at this point, he honestly accepted it. He accepted that the small seed of feelings he kept buried for quite some time was now being washed in Link's light and was desperately trying to grow despite Revali's still present envy. 

-

A solid week and a half had passed and things were beginning to get just a bit intense. There was no sign that Medoh would stop any time soon. Link's cold resistance food and elixirs had finally run out and he was freezing nearly every second he wasn't practicing and working up a sweat. The other Champions had tried their best to bring the barrier down, including evacuating the surrounding areas so Urbosa and Naboris could possibly harm Medoh's weak spots with a lightning attack, but nothing worked. Everyone was getting worried on what the fate of the two champions trapped inside were, they had stopped going out onto Medoh's back to watch the Champions try to fight because of constantly depleting temperature. 

Revali's progress with controlling Medoh was...going well, to an extent. Revali had managed to will Medoh to fly just a bit lower, but any other command after that was ignored. While Revali grew impatient Link just patted his back with one ice cold hand and assured him that he was closer. Revali, however, knew Link was growing impatient as well. Hylians could only withstand so much cold before it got to them. Revali needed to control Medoh sooner or else Hyrule would be left without a hero.

"I just don't understand, I've done all I could. I allowed Medoh to "be one with me" and whatnot and yet this over-sized bird still won't follow orders!" Link patted Revali's now healed shoulder with one cold, shaky hand. "It is official. Unless the others can free us, we will die here and it's all  _your_ fault!" Link raised his eyebrows and placed a hand on his chest, as if asking  _'me?'_ "Yes you!" If you hadn't of come back in here you wouldn't be on death's doorstep." 

_"Whatever."_ Link was lucky frostbite hadn't taken his fingers away so he could still communicate.  _"Complain and blame me all you'd like but that won't change the fact that we're stuck up here."_

"Maybe so, but it doesn't change the fact that really you are endangering the fate of the Kingdom just by being here."

_"Oh, this again? We're past that Revali. Get over it. Focus on you and your problem with Medoh."_

"Oh you'd like that wouldn't you?"

_"Yes! Very much so! I don't necessarily want to die here!"_  Revali rolled his eyes and waved that comment away before he turned around and placed his hands back on the pedestal. Closing his eyes the way he did many tries before this one, he relaxed and worked to find that connection with Medoh. Once he could see everything the Divine Beast could, he breathed in deeply and willed it to move down. Medoh didn't budge. 

"This is pointless!" Revali yelled in frustration, slamming a fist down on the pedestal. His anger echoed throughout the beast. "Clearly i'm not the right champion to pilot Medoh. They should just get someone else before Ganon revives itself." Link made no effort to comfort the Rito Warrior, the cold was really beginning to affect him. "Great, and now you're dying." Link shot Revali a glare but his excessive shivering ruined it. 

_"I'm fine."_  His hand barely wanted to move. Link wasn't going to last much longer. Revali frowned and reluctantly extended a wing. 

"Go on then. You're standing there pathetically and practically begging me to help you so here." Link tilted his head in confusion. "Get under my wing for Hylia's sake. My feathers are obviously made to withstand the cold so you'll be less affected." Link grinned from ear to ear and quickly went underneath Revali's wing. It was instantly warmer than the cruel cold air outside his wing, not by much but it was still warmer. "Do not go out and start telling all of Hyrule that I let you do this." Link nodded and rubbed his hands together in an attempt to warm them up. Revali had his wing wrapped around Link, his heart was beating fast again. He was starting to get a bit tired of always feeling this way whenever Link was directly involved with him. 

The day was ending and Revali decided to try again tomorrow. After all, things couldn't get any worse now.

-

_"We have no more food."_ Link signed out with freezing cold hands the very next morning.  _"We ran out!"_  Revali groaned and rubbed the sides of his head with his finger tips. On top of running out of food it seemed Medoh had gone up higher and deeper into the Hebra region. The freezing temperature was so intense that now Revali could feel it. 

"We are going to be just fine. We can survive without food or drink for at least another week." 

_"Maybe you can but my life revolves around eating every five seconds. Plus, if the starvation doesn't kill us then the freezing cold will! We need to get out of here and soon!"_

"I know, I know! But I just can't quite control Medoh yet and arguing hasn't help so far so it won't help me now!" Revali took in a deep breath and attempted to calm himself. "I can do this. I can feel whatever connection you were babbling on about growing stronger. I just need to have faith in myself." Revali, with Link under his wing desperately trying to stave off the cold, quickly made his way back again to the main control room. This time he didn't place his hands on the pedestal nor did he close his eyes. This time he began pacing back and forth and thought of ways to connect himself with Medoh. The other champions had easy ways to do so, their Divine Beasts were named after previous legends in Hyrule's History. Rudania after Darunia of the Goron, Ruta after Ruto of the Zora, and Naboris after Nabooru of the Gerudo. But Medoh didn't seemed to be named after anyone in the Rito, at least not to Revali's knowledge.

Perhaps Revali was looking for a connection in the wrong place. Maybe his connection didn't lie in the his history. Maybe it laid somewhere else. But what could it be? Revali sighed in frustration and tapped his foot impatiently. Time was now of the essence and every second spent on this flying deathtrap meant they were closer to becoming Champion Popsicles. 

Link's shivering grew more with every minute. He couldn't feel his face and was almost certain that frostbite would certainly get him now. Revali glanced down at the freezing Hylian. Goddess, this was his fault. Poor Link was stuck up here against his will because Revali couldn't pilot this  _damn Divine Beast_. This was all his fault, they were going to die up here because of Revali. He sighed and pulled Link just a bit closer to him.

"Since we're going to die in this awful bird, I'd like to...swallow my pride for just a moment and apologize for my unfair treatment of you. Mostly. While I still believe that some of the treatment you receive is too much...I understand that you have a lot of weight on your shoulders for a big part of your life. I hope...I hope that when your soul parts from this world the Goddesses allow you into the Sacred Realm."

 It was like the last key unlocked the last lock on the gate that kept Revali and Medoh apart. The Divine Beast let out a loud screech and the wind was knocked out of Revali's lungs for a second. The next moment, Revali could see all that Medoh could see and with a tentative command, Medoh's barriers barrier faded away. 

"Oh Hylia..." Revali laughed in relief and practically pushed Link over to the platform entrance of Vah Medoh. "Get on quickly!" The Rito Champion knelt down and Link scrambled onto his back and held on tightly. "I don't know how long this will last so we have to get out and fast." Using his signature move the Rito gathered a powerful updraft under his feet and flew into the night sky. The cold air stung Link's face but he endured it for the few minutes he had left in the Hebra Region. 

As Revali flew across the sky he commanded Medoh to follow him, which it did.  The gigantic bird made an abrupt U-turn and followed its pilot out of the Hebra Region and back to a much warmer area. All those inhabiting the Rito Village and surrounding areas saw such an incredible event unfold. The Rito Champion leading Divine Beast Vah Medoh back to the Rito Village with the Hylian Champion on his back. The energy quickly left Revali's body as the adrenaline of his accomplishment faded away. He tried to keep going, angling himself downward so he could hopefully make it to the ground but his still freezing cold wings soon gave up and soon both champions began plummeting to the ground. This time Link didn't have anything to grab onto to save the both of them or any wall to  land on. This time it was Revali's turn to save Link. As they fell the Rito snatched Link out of the air with his feet, making sure his talons didn't accidentally dig deep into Link's skin, and extended his wings to glide. The effort was very admirable but it did very little. Within another second Revali's wings gave out and he barely had enough time to try to throw Link farther up so he could swoop underneath him to soften his fall. 

Smashing into the ground hurt like hell of course, but what probably hurt Revali more was Link landing on top of him. With a loud groan the Rito sat up, not moving Link and looked around. He was dizzy and his eyesight was blurry but he saw Vah Medoh safely circling the Rito Village and smiled. From behind him he heard oncoming footsteps and several shouts of both his and Link's names. Revali barely managed to turn around to see the other champions as well as a few others running to them both before he collapsed into unconsciousness.

-

From that point on the other Champions noticed just a small difference in Revali and Link's attitude towards one another. They didn't know what had happened between the two up in Vah Medoh but they knew it changed something. The two did continue to bicker constantly but it seemed different for one reason or another. Zelda was honestly just a bit envious of Link's newfound trust in Revali and how close they seemed to be but whatever kept them from nearly killing each other every day made her happy.

The sort of relationship Revali secretly wished for with Link was not a possibility at the moment. Not with Mipha's obvious feelings for him, not with Zelda's now obvious growing attachment to him, not with the threat of Calamity Ganon. Perhaps it would be something to look forward to after the darkness has been sealed and Link and Zelda's sacred duty had been fulfilled. However had Revali known that Ganon would return on Zelda's birthday to take control over all the Divine Beasts and Guardians and essentially trap and kill the Champions inside them, he would've made more of an effort to share his true feelings with Link before he died. 

Even when Revali ran around Vah Medoh in search of a safe area to hide and try to bandage himself up from Windblight Ganon's attack Revali found himself thinking back to the time when he was first trapped inside the Divine Beast but with Link instead of Ganon's monstrosity. It was at that moment that it dawned on him that he would never get to see the incredibly annoying Hylian again. He'd never be able to brag to Link about how  _he_ was the better archer of the two and how it should really be Revali in Hyrule Castle going to defeat Ganon. He'd never get another chance to see Link roll his eyes and rapidly sign a string of comebacks to whatever insult Revali had thrown at him. He wouldn't even get to use the excuse of  _"It's cold, you're going to freeze to death again."_  to wrap his wing around Link (though Link knew it wasn't cold and Revali just wanted to use that as a cover up. Huh, maybe Link did know Revali's true feelings after all...

When Windblight Ganon finally found Revali tucked away in some small corner desperately trying to rub fairy tonic on his many injuries, Revali's last thoughts before he was obliterated into a million feathers was; _"I hope your luck holds out Link."_

Little did the pompous Rito know he'd be seeing Link again, in a hundred years or so. When a bomb arrow first hit one of Medoh's canons Revali instantly knew who it was. Excitement filled his veins as he got to watch Link soar through the sky with another white-feathered Rito Warrior. The two managed to take down Medoh's barrier and Link landed safely on the Divine Beast. Revali helped Link regain control of Medoh and cheered him on throughout the fight with Ganon's disgusting soldier. When the time came the Rito's spirit was free and he took back his form.

There was a clear difference in Link. He didn't seem too excited to see Revali, he looked more confused than anything. Revali didn't let that get to him however, he blamed it on the hundred year nap Link had just taken. He gifted Link his power of creating an updraft and with that, a piece of his own spirit now lived on in the Hylian champion. It stayed with him throughout his journey of regaining memories, helping Hyrule's inhabitants, bearing cold nights with little food and running from powerful foes, up to the much anticipated battle with Ganon where Medoh let out a strong attack on Revali's command.

The Rito Champion's journey had now ended. His spirit was free and his duty had been fulfilled. He and the other champions were now free to enter the Sacred Realm. As Revali watched Link and Zelda slowly walk out of Hyrule Castle he knew that this wouldn't be the last time he would see him. 

**Author's Note:**

> It's a bit of a long fic, I know, but I hope you enjoy! Check out my Sidlink fics too if you're interested!


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